Data Cap

The issue has been going on for years already but it's only last 2014 that the government became serious with calling on the major carriers about data throttling. October last year, the FTC filed a complaint in federal court against AT&T for throttling. AT&T then claimed that FTC can't sue them but it was soon dismissed by a judge a couple of months ago.

Verizon "changed their mind" when it comes to their planned data throttling for unlimited data users, but this may not be out of the goodness of their hearts. The FCC exerted pressure on the carrier to reverse their decision, and it seems like this, together with much public criticism, actually worked as they revealed they decided to "not move forward" with implementing their plan. Instead, they have removed unlimited data plans and just doubled the data for shared users in their MORE Everything plans.

If you've been worried that running Ookla's network testing app or any other similar app would run you afoul of your monthly data cap, worry no longer. At least, if you're a T-Mobile subscriber. The carrier has come out to confirm that data transmitted via network speed tests won't count towards a user's regular data usage.

With shared or tiered data plans fast becoming the new normal, many of us will want to find ways to maximize the small pool of data we draw from. Though we typically don’t use more than 2GB monthly, there is a glass ceiling. After the limit, it’s usually pretty expensive to get past it.

TracFone has recently offered a bit of an update in terms of the data throttling policies for Straight Talk and Net10. Both are currently offering unlimited data options, however as many are familiar with, those unlimited claims often need further clarification. That being the case, we last heard from Straight Talk back in April when they denied those 1.5GB cutoff rumors.

Verizon Wireless introduced a pair of prepaid smartphone plans back in early February. At the time those plans were offering 500MB of data for $60 per month or 2GB of data for $70 per month. Both plans also included unlimited voice minutes and unlimited messaging. Flash forward till today and it looks like Big Red has announced an increase for the data.

There's been a lot of hubbub this week for Verizon's "grandfathered" unlimited data customers, who are concerned that their all-you-can-eat smorgasbord of 3G and 4G LTE will end when the company introduces new shared data plans this summer. Verizon has updated their statement, assuring unlimited customers that they don't have to sign a new contract if they don't want to. Of course, that also means that they'll be ineligible for the discounted pricing on new phones, without which most mid-range and high-end Android devices become prohibitively expensive.

Bad news today for those that have been longtime customers of Verizon Wireless. I'm getting ready for the backlash now, and I bet Verizon is too. Today the news has just dropped that Verizon will be axing data plans for those using unlimited data on old "grandfathered" plans from back before 4G LTE and all that. If you've been enjoying unlimited data for $30 a month like many others, this will be coming to an end this summer.

Google's music streaming option has continued to grow over the past few months since it was officially released back in November of 2011. Originally called Google Music it was recently renamed Google Play Music along with the Google Play Store. While the average user wont run into some of the below issues, many of the die-hard Android users (and there are plenty) will have them, and hopefully Google can make some changes moving forward.

The DROID 4 and buy one, get one free deals on the DROID RAZR aren't the only thing that's hitting Verizon Wireless soon. The company has brought back its incredibly popular Double Data Deal, allowing new and recurring customers to get twice the data caps on smartphone data plans starting Friday, February 10th. That means the $30 2GB plan is bumped up to 4GB, the $50 5GB plan goes up to 10GB, and the $80 10GB plan will be 20GB. The plans last for the lifetime of your Verizon account and are equally valid on 4G LTE and 3G, but unfortunately can't be applied to MiFi-dstyle hotspot devices.